Vienna has a gift of intuition and the ability to make people think they actually had the experience she pulls from their mind. Vienna’s very successful in her virtual life but in her real life, she’s never climaxed. That’s been her secret for as long as she’s been sexually active.
When Vienna confides her secret in Jonas, he wants to help. Only thing is, he’s in a committed relationship with a long-time girlfriend. When his shrewish girlfriend becomes jealous over his friendship with Vienna, will he cut off the friendship and break her heart? Buy on Amazon
“So,” I begin, twirling a long lock of purple hair around my finger. The purple lock is surrounded by blond hair. I have Nordic features—blond hair, blue eyes, pale skin—but a rebellious streak in me calls for touches of bold color from time to time. “What if I told you a secret?”
“I’d say, ‘What this time?’” the male voice on the other side of the phone answers. He chuckles. “You tell me everything.”
“I do seem to.” I picture his dark wavy hair and intense blue eyes. I imagine his six-foot-four-inch body clad in jeans and a clings-to-every-muscle recyclable thermoplastic 3-D-fiber high-tech T-shirt, which is his uniform of choice. The man is sexy, sexy, sexy. And he’s taken, taken, taken. It’s as it should be, I think for the millionth time. I pick up a pen from my desk and tap it thoughtfully on the scratched wood and dinged-up silvery titanium.
“What are you doing? What’s that tap, tap, tap sound?”
“Tapping a pen on the desk, why?”
“That’s what I thought. Nervous? Or contemplating using your skills on me?”
“Maybe both.”
“What are you nervous about? Is this about your past? You’re not daydreaming about your abusive upbringing again, are you? Anything you need to share? You know I’m here for you.”
“Nope.”
“Didn’t think so. You never like to talk about your past.” He sighs. “You know I’d listen.”
“That’s not what it is.”
“Okay, so why are you contemplating accessing my mind? Is this about me or you? If it’s about me, the answer is yes.”
He pauses and I can almost hear him smiling. He’s always joking about how much he wants me.
“I’ll just tell you,” he continues. “You don’t have to read my mind or manipulate it to get at the truth, you know.”
“I know.” I was only a child when I learned that I’m a little bit different than other people—I can mess with people’s minds and make them think they’re seeing and experiencing things. “Maybe it will work this time.” I smile.
“Probably not. I like my version of reality just fine and don’t like to have my mind accessed without consent.”
“I can always use the practice.” Jonas is the one person whom my skills don’t work on. Whether it’s because we’re best friends, or he’s got some mad skills of his own, I’ve never understood it.
“Vienna, if you want an all-access pass, I can…”
“Never mind.” I tug my purple lock.
“I’ve told you before, and I’ll tell you again. You want in, I’ll let you in…all the way in. But not that way. Not the way you’ve told me about.”
A flush creeps up my face. “What are you and the missus having for supper tonight?” I ask, attempting to change the subject.
“My girlfriend and Iare having tacos and beer. You can join us if you like. Quit stalling. What’s your secret?”
“No, thanks. I have to work. And she acts like your wife. And I’ll get to it…The secret, I mean.” “You’d best act fast, Vienna. I’ve gotta jet in ten. I’ve got to get to an appointment across town.”
“What kind of appointment?”
“Dentist. I hate going to the dentist.”
“Who doesn’t?”
“I know, right? So, spill the beans, girl.”
I swallow. Push a piece of glossy plastic around in circles with my fingertips. Bite the nail of my index finger. Unbutton the collar of my high-tech jumpsuit—the one I wear when I work. It’s made from a silky see-through fiber extracted from sour milk. The fiber was developed a couple decades ago but has withstood the test of time for its ability to regulate body temperature and blood circulation. Right now it’s not working all that well—it’s trapping a lot of heat inside of it and I mean a lot. I wasn’t this hot a minute ago. Beads of sweat are forming along my neck and face. I pluck at a couple of the highly sensitive electrical nodes on the suit. These nodes help me do the magic that I do at my job—take my special ability and allow me to sense and feel what a client is thinking, craving, and desiring, and project that fantasy into the space around me for his personal enjoyment. I fan my face with my hand. I’m thinking, feeling, and sensing that telling Jonas my little secret is a bad idea. I don’t need any nodes to determine this.
“Vienna?”
“Still here. I’m gathering courage.” I smile at the phone, staring at it.
“Wow, this sounds serious. Are you finally going to tell me what you do for a living?”
“I already told you. I’m sort of a counselor.” Not.
“Well, Ms. Sort-of-a-Counselor, I’ve got a serious problem. I can’t stop looking at porn holograms. They’re dancing all around me right now, as we speak.”
I burst out laughing. I know he’s not looking at a porn holo. He’s probably looking at the Lumber Liquidators visual or Handyman High-Tech Hardware. But Jonas always seems to know just what to say to make me laugh. “Which one? ‘Bitches and Beauties’?”
“No, ‘Naughty Temptresses.’ They remind me of you.” “
Ha! That’s what you always say.” His voice lowers to a caress. “It’s true. When are you going to let me love you?”
I swallow. I’m glad he can’t see my face right now. My cheeks are hot. “You do love me,” I say, twisting my purple hair.
“Really love you.”
“You can love me as much as you want. But you’ve got a longtime girlfriend, remember? She’s the one you get to have sex with.”
“Get to or have to?” he mumbles.
“What?”
“Nothing. You know I think you’re exotic.”
“So you say.”
“And unique.”
“Heard that, too.”
“And sultry.”
“Uh huh.”
“And I think you’ve made it your mission to package yourself in such an appealing way and not be available.”
“You’re the one who’s not available.” I’m grinning. We play this game all the time. “You’re with…what’s her name?” I blank out on her name, even though I know it by heart.
“Oh, come on, V.”
“Oh, right, it’s Jenner. Jenner Cartwright, your bitchy mean-as-sin girlfriend. Former High School Cheerleader and Up and Comer in the game called Life. Jenner and Jonas, also known as Joner, which rhymes with Boner.” I sing the last sentence.
He laughs.
I like it when Jonas laughs. He’s got a great laugh. “Okay, I’m ready.”
“For the secret? I’m listening.”
I take a deep breath, clench the edge of the desk, and blurt it out. “I’ve never had an orgasm.” He laughs again. “Then I’ll have to counter with ‘Well, baby, you’ve never been with a guy like me.’ Seriously, what’s your secret?”
“I just told you.”
“Are you kidding?”
“No. Dead serious.” No response. “Jonas?”
“I’m still here.” He breathes deeply into my ear. “No joke?” he says softly.
“No joke.” Now that it’s out there I feel ashamed. My face heats to boiling and I suddenly want to be doing something else—anything. Why, oh, why did I think it was a good idea to tell my longtime best friend Jonas about the secret I haven’t told a soul?
Oh, sure, I’ve had plenty of encounters. Tall, short, fat, skinny, and sculpted. Men who professed to be awesome lovers. Men who seemed to have never done it in their lives. I even loved a couple of them, or at least I think I did. None of them managed to give me an orgasm. Good thing I have a gift in mastering voices. I can fake it like crazy.
“Uh, I’ve got to go, Jonas,” I say.
“You’re going to have an orgasm by Christmas,” he blurts.
A sarcastic laugh burbles from my throat. “Right. In a couple months, I’m going to miraculously achieve what I’ve never achieved before. And who’s going to give it to me? You?”
“Maybe.”
“Don’t think your girlfriend will like that.”
“I’m coming over, Vienna.”
“What? I thought you had to get to the dentist’s?”
“I do. Then I’m coming over. I’ll need a drink after whatever Dr. Bob seems to think I’ll need.” “Well, sure, but I thought it was taco night at the Joner’s house. And I told you I have to work.” “It’ll be quick. I want to talk to you about what you just said and what I just said.”
“Uh, okay, but I’m kind of sorry I told you. It’s my secret.”
“Now it’s out in the open. Or at least it’s a shared secret. Look, I’ve got to go. I’ll see you in about an hour and a half. And Vienna?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks for trusting me with your secret. It means a lot to me. Seriously, a lot.”
“Okay. You’re welcome.” Kind of. “I’ll see you in a while.” This was a big mistake.